Cairns, Yorkey’s Knob and Kiting

Well folks, I know it’s been ages since the last update...but you know what it’s like when you’re busy doing nothing, you get lazy!!! So what has happened since Malaysia...well...I got a cheap flight from KL to Melbourne and headed down to see Mr Jonny Wellman for a few days and basically get drunk with him lol. I had a bit of a sore throat...so no buckets, but a shed load of drinks around the St. Kilda of Melbourne. As a nice coincidence, it was Jonny’s “Citizenship” ceremony when I was at the MCG...so Jonny, Anni (great to meet her at long last) and I headed there for the most ceremony in the world. Anyway, Jonny is now officially an Ozzie...bad luck dude lol.

After the nice few days in Melbourne and back in the modern world (and the cold!!!)...I headed to Sydney on a 10 hour bus trip. Strange, how hopping on the bus for 10 hours is now no problem!! Stayed at Dallas’ for a night or 2 and then headed to see Pete and Rach and the kids for a few days. Great to see them again after nearly 5 months!! Emeliana is looking great and is the spitting image of Rach...a very happy child and loves being talked to J Looking forward to seeing them again for the last time this year after the trip to Cairns.

So...after the Kimbers...it was time for the some kitesurfing in Yorkey’s Knob in Cairns. I decided to stay in the Cairns Sharehouse and glad I did...met a load of great people there including Mike, Kyle, Mel, Flo, Harmony, Julie, Damien, Claire, Stephanie and JB....plus a few others. Looking to forward to catching up the French crew sometime next year....especially a visit to Cap Ferrat  with JB :)

Cairns Sharehouse has been great fun and was nice to have a room to myself without having to stay in Hostels etc for a short while at least.

The kiting has improved no end now :) After a few days in the Sharehouse and renting a beat up old car for $25AUD a day, I headed to Yorkey’s Knob and was a bit apprehensive going kiting on my own...but to my pleasant surprise, Scotty from Mui Ne, was actually with Chris’ Kite Rite Surf School!! So I headed out with him most days for some kiting in Yorkey’s or Port Douglas.

I’ve had a great few weeks of kiting fun etc with Scott and soooo happy that I bumped into him...it certainly wouldn’t have been as fun if I had not met up with him. Also, great that I can leave my board with him and so don’t have to lug it back to Sydney...another excuse to go to Mui Ne and pick up my gear :)

Alice came up from Sydney a couple of time and was great to see her again...kind of weird how everyone from Mui Ne keep bumping into each other. Kiteworld sure is a small world at the moment. Went to Cape TribTrib...but managed to be the only kiter in Cape Trib when I headed back there with Mel and Kyle a week or so late...so that was cool J

So basically, objective in Cairns/Yorkeys achieved...I can now kite and stay upwind/do turns/self launch/self land and a bit of toeside action too....woo...hoo. Nice to have the confidence to go out wherever now and on my own if need be.  Jumping next hahaha . Can’t wait to get back to Mui Ne and the challenges of the waves...hope I don’t forget anything by January next year and get smashed by the Mui Ne waves, as there’ll be no more kiting between now and the end of year L

Just found out yesterday that Siobhan O’Neill has booked a trip to India at the beginning of the October!! Which is perfect timing as I will be in Mumbai on the  23^rd September and so will get a change to head to Goa to meet her. Would be great to meet up with someone from back home, so really forward to that in 2 months time.

I leave Cairns on this Saturday morning and so only 2 more potential days of kiting...unlikely though as the forecast is not great and there has been no wind the last 2 days boo...hoo. Ah well, looking forward to heading to Queenstown for some snowboarding and to try snowkiting for the first time. No idea how much the 4 weeks in Queenstown will cost...oh well...still some redundancy money left...so what the heck and India should be pretty cheap as well.

Anyway folks, will sign off now...so  until the next rant...sooooo long suckerssssss...

Sanjay